Rikishi's Move Is A Little Cheeky, But It Gets Him Noticed

ALEX MARVEZ INSIDE THE RING

When he broke into the wrestling business 17 years ago, Solofa Fatu Jr. never expected his buttocks would become his ticket to World Wrestling Federation stardom.

Fatu, aka Rikishi, has adopted the "stinkface" as his trademark maneuver. With his opponent lying prone in the corner of the ring, Fatu sticks his sizable rear end, which is covered in skimpy tights, in their face with a smile normally reserved for children at Christmas.

"That [move] came up two years ago in Mobile, Ala., when I was wrestling the Big Bossman and he fell in the corner," said Fatu, who has given the stinkface to almost every top WWF performer. "As I turned around, I heard some man yell out, `Put your [butt] in his face.' Meantime, I forgot what spot came next, so I walked over and put my [butt] in his face.

"It was the biggest reaction I had gotten, so I said I was going to do it next time. It's been easy since then. I don't think the Bossman knew what was coming. He saw my cheeks backing up and had nowhere to go."

Fatu's career was going nowhere before adopting the Rikishi persona three years ago. The nephew of Afa the Wild Samoan (Afa Anoia), Fatu had wrestled in the WWF since the early 1990s in a host of gimmicks that didn't allow him to advance past a mid-card level.

After being a member of The Headshrinkers with older cousin Samu (Samula Anoia), and later The Barbarian (Sionne Vailahi), Fatu began wrestling as a singles performer. Fatu then was inexplicably packaged under a mask as The Sultan, a stereotypical Middle Eastern heel role, before being sent to a WWF developmental territory in Memphis in search of a new gimmick.

"It was getting frustrating trying characters from scratch," said Fatu, who wrestled with Samu as the Samoan Swat Team before their WWF debut. "Finally I said, `Let's just wait until we find the right one.' This was something that [WWF owner] Vince [McMahon] wanted to do. I've got the buns for it, so we went with it."

Fatu tweaked the gimmick, which was inspired by his late cousin, Rodney "Yokozuna" Anoia, by bleaching his hair and throwing some dance maneuvers into his repertoire. That led to a highly successful pairing with Too Cool (Brian "Grand Mastah Sexay" Lawler and Scotty "2 Hotty" Garland).

But in 2000, Rikishi was turned heel after being identified as the mystery driver of the car that hit "Stone Cold" Steve Austin backstage on a WWF pay-per-view show. The decision set his career back.

"I was having so much fun as a babyface character that I didn't want to switch," Fatu said. "But at the time, I was the guy to do it. It fit in with the story line and so forth. Hey, I've got no complaints. I got the chance to work with Austin and The Rock and all the great ones in the business. It was OK, but I'd rather have had another year as a babyface."

Fatu then spent much of last year out of the ring because of injuries. Almost immediately after returning from an ankle injury last spring, Fatu suffered a torn rotator cuff when landing poorly on a Kurt Angle suplex.

Fatu didn't make it back until last month, when The Rock brought him out to give the stinkface to McMahon, who was forcing employees to kiss his butt in the ring. During his absence, Fatu lost more than 60 pounds and now weighs 350 entering Sunday's Royal Rumble pay-per-view show.

"Being off and in therapy, I did a lot of [cardiovascular] and weight training to tone my body," said Fatu, 36. "I feel a lot better. Before, I was carrying all this weight and was at more of a risk for injury."

Fatu's ultimate goal is joining Rodney Anoia as the second WWF champion from his family. But even if it doesn't happen, Fatu is appreciative of his wrestling career and family.

During every ring entrance, Fatu rubs his nose to tell his wife, Talisua, and his five children that he's thinking about them.

"I thought about what I could do to say I love you on TV without saying it," said Fatu, who received approval from his wife before prominently displaying his derriere as Rikishi. "I thought about smacking my [butt], but this is better."

Hogan, Nash rumors

Speculation continues that Hulk Hogan, Kevin Nash and Scott Hall will debut soon in the WWF in a reprisal of their New World Order gimmick from World Championship Wrestling. The trio would then serve as top stars when the WWF starts an offshoot promotion, which should happen shortly within the next two weeks stemming from the McMahon vs. Ric Flair match at the Rumble.

Announcer's book

Ex-ring announcer Gary Cappetta will have a book signing for his 304-page autobiography Bodyslams! at 8 p.m. Wednesday at Books & Books, 933 Lincoln Road in Miami Beach. Released in the fall of 2000, Bodyslams! covers Cappetta's career from his 1974 announcing debut in the World Wide Wrestling Federation (the WWF's name before becoming a national promotion) through the end of his seven-year stint with WCW in 1995. Information, call 305-532-3222.

Q & A

Q. Where is Scott Norton? -- Will Smith, San Angelo, Texas

A. Norton remains one of the most-popular foreign stars working for New Japan Pro Wrestling and had a brief reign as the group's world champion last year.

Look for Norton, 43, to continue wrestling exclusively overseas, as the WWF has never shown much interest in his services.

More of the Solofa Fatu Jr. interview can be found at www.wrestlingobserver.com. Questions can be sent to Marvez, Sun-Sentinel, 200 E. Las Olas Blvd., Fort Lauderdale, FL 33301, or e-mailed to amarvez@sun-sentinel.com. Please include your full name and city of residence. Because of volume, no phone calls will be accepted and letters will not receive a written reply.